Friday, January 11, 2008

Chingay competition and parade are the annual events held in Penang. According to Wikipedia, the term of Chingay itself originated from Penang and the first Chingay parade was held in Penang in 1905. The Chingay performance used to be limited to Chinese only. Through the time, it has evolved to become a multi-racial performance now. You can see that Malays and Indians also participated in the Chingay performance at the competition and parade. Although the tricks which they performed might look much simpler than the tricks which performed by Chinese but you can see that they are doing their best in every trick. The art of pulling off a perfect Chingay performance requires a very good teamwork and perfect coordination among the team members. The Chingay parade also featuring lion and dragon dances, stilt walkers and some lighting floats. I have not been to the Chingay parade for quite a number of years and the memory of the last Chingay parade which I saw is very vague now. It was really good to see one again this year.

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Hi there, I found your website while I was looking for information on traveling to Penang. Unfortunately, I have trouble finding and wonder if you would mind to give me some locals' info. I wonder if you know any interesting events will be happening in Feb? We are thinking to come to Penang on the third day of CNY. I wonder if it will be a good time to come? Will most shops closed and the streets are quiet?

Before I start, I would like to welcome you to Penang! Please feel free to send me your questions about Penang or Malaysia in general. I would be more than happy to help from here. Off my head now, there are two events which going to happen during Feb. The first event is the Chinese New Year street party. The exact date of this event has not been confirmed yet as far as I know from the local newspaper here. Annually, this event will be held around the heritage trail of Penang, somewhere at downtown and nearby Komtar area. You will be able to enjoy cultural shows, local foods, lion dances etc. You can even get access to Khoo Kongsi for free on that day if you are able to squeeze in through the crowd. The second event which marks the end of Chinese New Year will be held on the 15th days of Chinese New Year. It is normally held at the Esplanade.There will be some stage shows there at that night. Most of the shops resume their business on the 3rd day of CNY. Some shops or restaurants only closed for one day during CNY. So, don't worry. You can find the foods easily and do the shopping as usual. The only disadvantage of coming to Penang during this time is the price of the food will be more expensive than usual. The hawker foods will be RM0.50 or, in rare case, RM1.00 more expensive. Where are you coming from? Are you coming to Penang alone?My email address is tang.sk@hotmail.com